Another Day In Paradise
by Darktiger2
Summary: Oneshot. When you're homeless, everyone looks through you. But when a kind soul helps you, it gives both of you one more day in paradise.


_Hey guys! This is just a quick one-shot._

_Disclaimer: The good news: One day, I woke up and I said "I'm gonna own the turtles today!" So I went out and bought the whole company and now I own them! The bad news: I woke up._

_While reading this, listen to Phil Collins' "Another Day in Paradise." It goes really well with this._

* * *

The cold wind whirled around them. It was so cold that their breath froze before it even left their mouths. It was the coldest winter that had ever hit.

Snow had fallen last night and then froze on the ground. It froze so hard, that a thousand people could stand on it and it would not crack.

It was insane for anyone to be outside at this time. But they didn't really have a choice. After all, when your enemy is on the move, you have to expect an attack at anytime.

"This is stupid. Tell me _again_ why we're out here while Mikey and Donny are sitting in the warm Lair?"

A huddled form in a brown, thick but warm coat heaved a sigh. He tiredly pushed the two blue tails of his bandana out of his face, but the wind just blew them back. "Because, Raph," He repeated patiently to his younger brother, who was sitting huddled in an identical brown thick coat, with his back to a wall and his red bandana tails flying in the wind. "We had decided to take turns in watching the city. You know, to keep it safe?"

The younger sibling snorted as an answer. "And whose dumb idea was it to take turns?"

The elder raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Yours."

Brown eyes stared at him in surprise, before they darkened with realization. "Oh. But it seemed such a good idea at that time!" He declared, trying to defend himself.

The elder one chuckled a bit, but let it pass. He was too tired and cold to tease his brother.

They sat there, in silence for a little while longer, before the younger stood up. "Right. I had enough. I'm goin' home. Ain't nothin' gonna happen, Leo. Let's jus' quit. It's crazy ta stay here!"

Blue eyes scanned the streets one last time before they focused back onto his younger brother. "Fine. Let's go." He stood up, shivering meanwhile from the cold.

"FINALLY!" The younger yelled, excitedly running to the edge of the roof. He scanned the streets before he jumped down, landing neatly on fours before standing up.

The elder sibling scanned the area again, before he too, jumped down, landing neatly next to his brother, who had already found a manhole and had opened it.

But just as they were about to jump in, the heard a noise of someone walking down the alley they were in.

Both of them froze, before quickly pressing themselves to the walls, and praying that the person wouldn't see them.

The noise steadily got louder, until a small huddled figure appeared, walking down the alley slowly.

Judging from the way the person walked, it was a young girl, barely twelve. She wore a long gray coat that was tattered and torn, black sweat pants that were dirty and worn. She also had a thin blue scarf wrapped around her neck. Her pale blonde hair flew all around her face, but she did not seem to notice. She kept her eyes fixed on the floor. She seemed to be freezing.

Leo watched her pass silently. She never noticed him and his brother, nor the open manhole near them.

After she was gone, Leo looked after her.

His younger brother fidgeted a bit before climbing out of his hiding place. "C'mon, Leo! There's a hot mug of coffee with my name on it at home!"

But Leo didn't answer; he kept looking after the girl.

Raph finally noticed. He let out a soft groan. "Leave her. If she's stupid enough not ta go ta a shelter, than she deserves to freeze."

Leo shot him a glare. "That's mean, Raph."

"Mean, but true."

Leo shrugged. "Shouldn't we help her, though?"

Raph gritted his teeth before turning around and jumping into the manhole. Then, he stuck his head out. "Help her if ya want. But I won't. We barely have enough food for ourselves. Sometimes we jus' gotta be selfish."

When his brother didn't respond, Raph rolled his eyes. "I'm goin' home. See ya, Leo."

Leo nodded as his brother disappeared down the manhole once more.

He, himself, looked after the girl. Sighing, he trotted after her.

* * *

He caught up with her easily. She was walking very slowly, almost dragging her feet.

"Hey."

He jumped. He didn't expect the girl to notice him so soon.

"I'm homeless and I'm cold. Will you help me, please?"

Leo hesitated before slipping off his coat. Underneath, he wore a thin jacket, but he could do without the coat. He hesitantly outstretched it to the girl, who still had her back towards him. "Here."

This time she jumped. She whirled around and stared at him with a pair of dark blue eyes. They held surprise and glee. She quickly took the coat and put it on. "Thanks! I thought you would ignore me and just go away…like they all do…"

Leo cocked his head, thankful that the wind and the flurries were shielding his true form from her. He could barely see her, so she could barely see him. "They who?"

The girl wrapped the coat tighter around herself. "Everyone." She sighed. "When you're homeless, people tend to walk right by you. Like your invisible."

Leo felt a pang of sadness for her. She was just a child and she was already suffering. "Hey, there's a homeless shelter near here. Do you want me to escort you there?"

The girl shook her head violently. "No. I'm looking for my brother. He's the only family I have and I need to find him. Please, will you help me?" Those pleading blue eyes pierced into him.

He nodded. "Sure. What's your name?"

The girl hesitated. "Eira. But my brother used to call me 'Snow.' Did you know that Eira means snow in Welsh?"

Leo smiled as he shook his head. "No, I didn't. My name's Leo, by the way." He paused. "So tell me about your brother."

Snow paused. "He's five years older than me. He has really bright blue eyes, kinda like yours, and he's got blonde hair like mine. He's really nice."

They were walking again. This time, side by side, they walked, down the empty street.

"His name is Bran, but everyone calls him Raven. Bran is Welsh for 'Raven'."

"So I take it you're Welsh?"

Snow giggled. "Yeah. My parents just moved here a year ago. But after their business failed and we went into poverty, our whole life changed. My mom ran away with another guy, while my dad just one day walked out and never came back. We were left alone." She paused, her eyes on the ground again. "Then people came. They took us away to a foster home. But they wanted to split us up. So, me and Raven ran away. We've lived on the streets ever since."

"I'm sorry." Leo said, feeling very sorry indeed. "I've never been homeless. I have a good home and a nice family, so I can't say that I understand. But if it's any consolation, I've never known my mother either."

Snow smiled sadly. "Then one day, Raven disappeared. He went away and didn't come back. But I know that he wouldn't abandon me. We made a promise to each other that we won't ever abandon each other. So now I'm searching for him."

Leo nodded slowly. He wasn't cold anymore. His body had become too numb to feel the cold anymore. He dully wondered if this was how Snow felt.

He studied the ground, before realizing that Snow wore no shoes. Her feet were purple and swollen. "Where are your shoes?" He asked before thinking.

Snow laughed suddenly. "I don't have any. When you live out here, there are things that you don't have. Like food. I go without food for days at a time. It's a tough life."

Leo looked at her pityingly. "We don't always have enough food. But we always have some. Our life isn't so easy either. But I think yours is worse. I'm sorry. I wish I could help—"

Snow looked up at him in surprise. "But you are helping! You gave me your coat and now you are helping me find my brother!"

Leo didn't answer. He looked around. They were in a different neighborhood now. The houses were all small and shaggy. Some houses were abandoned and the walls or the roofs had caved in. "Where are we?"

"The west side of the city. The poorest section. Me and Raven live here."

They walked in silence past the houses. They kept on walking till they reached a tiny house, with broken windows and no doors.

Snow smiled. "My home!" She cried in glee, rushing towards the broken house.

Leo looked at the house before slowly following.

Snow jumped up and down in glee as she stopped before where the door was supposed to be. "Raven? Are you here?" She cried, before rushing inside.

Leo waited outside for her, not wanting to intrude.

Minutes passed before Snow stepped out again, looking sad. "He's not here."

Leo walked up to her. "I'm sorry."

Snow looked away. "It's okay. I didn't really expect to find him." But Leo could tell that she was faking it.

"Do you want me to take you to that shelter?" Leo finally asked her.

Snow shook her head. "No. But I think you should go home. You're freezing…"

Leo shook his head. "Freezing? I'm not freezing—"

Snow smiled sadly. "Your family is worried about you. You'd better get home." She looked close to crying.

Leo shook his head even more stubbornly. "No. I'll help you find your brother. Or at least a shelter—"

Snow looked down at the ground, her eyes filled with tears. "You're too kind. I don't deserve it. I lied to you."

Leo cocked his head. "What do you mean?"

"I didn't tell you the whole story. My brother and me had this huge fight. I ran away from him. He didn't run away. He never ran away. The only reason I didn't return earlier was because I couldn't."

Leo blinked. He was confused. "Why couldn't you?"

Snow shrugged. "I don't know."

Leo stared at her, long and hard. She was sniffling silently while staring at the ground. She looked really pathetic. "And now he probably hates me. He probably is glad I'm gone…" She began to cry.

Leo felt his heart soften. "Well, it doesn't matter. You didn't lie. You just didn't want me in your private life. I can understand that."

This time it was Snow who looked at him in surprise. Leo smiled at her. "It's okay. I don't think your brother's angry with you. I don't know what the fight was about, but siblings fight all the time. Believe me. I have a hothead brother who always runs out after a fight. Its just part of life. But we don't stay angry at each other forever. And we definitely don't hate each other." He paused. "And I think your brother loves you very much. He doesn't hate you. And I bet he's out there, searching for you. I think you'll find him one day."

Snow smiled, her tears slowly stopping. "You think?"

Leo nodded.

Snow laughed. "Yeah. And I'm gonna find him and say sorry! Now, where's that shelter you keep wanting to take me too? Maybe he's there!"

Leo laughed at the sudden change in her character. "Come on. I'll take you there."

But Snow shook her head. "No. You should go home. I'm old enough to find it by myself."

"But—"

"No one'll hurt me and I won't get lost."

Leo sighed. "You sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay…" he said, before telling her the directions.

* * *

He was gone. He left her. But she wasn't sad this time. He didn't leave her like everyone else did. He was much nicer than they ever were.

Snow closed her eyes before raising her face towards the sky. "He was right. Raven was never angry with me. I think…I think I'm ready to find my way home."

The wind blew harder the flurries fell thicker, but she didn't realize it, for she wasn't there.

* * *

"_Leo! Hey Leo!"_

_Leo opened his eyes. He was standing on a long, winding path that led to a silver gate. Everything was so dazzling white around him._

_But there, the silver gate was open and Snow was waving to him._

"_Thank you."_

_Leo whirled around. Behind him stood a tall young man, his eyes a bright blue and his hair a blonde color. Leo immediately recognized him. "Raven?"_

_He smiled. "Yes. And I thank you so much for helping my sister."_

_Leo blinked. "Um..sure?"_

_Raven laughed, his voice ringing all around them. "Snow had run away after our fight. We both said things that we did not mean. And Snow let it go to her head. She ran off, but her fears would not let her move on. You helped her put her fears aside. And I thank you. I have been searching and waiting for her. And now, she is here. Thank you, so much."_

_Leo smiled. "It was nothing. I'm just glad to help." Then, on a second thought, he asked, "But when you said 'move on' does that mean—"_

_Raven nodded. "Yes." He stated simply, before he put a hand onto Leo's shoulder. "You'd better get back now. Your family is worried."_

_Snow was still waving at him. But this time, she was yelling farewells to him. Raven kept on smiling at him as everything slowly started to fade…_

* * *

Leo woke up to a soft bed. He groaned as he heard an annoying beeping sound next to him.

With great difficulty, he opened his eyes. He yelped at the sudden brightness of everything, but he slowly got accustomed to it. Once he could bear it, he looked around.

There were shelves on the walls packed with boxes of first aid kits and medical things. There were also books scattered on the shelves and the floor, some open and some closed shut.

The annoying beeping sound was coming from a heart-rate monitor in the corner of the room. It was hooked up to a computer that was showing his heart rate.

Leo smiled faintly. He knew where he was. Don's medical lab. This was where they all went when they had serious injuries. And it still amazed him what the lab had. Don had almost all of the latest medical tech stuff. How he got them, he didn't know. And he didn't WANT to know.

But to the more important matter…why was HE here? The last time he checked, he wasn't injured…

The door opened right then and Donny stepped in. He stopped at the door in faint surprise to see Leo staring at him, before he burst into a smile. "You're up!" He exclaimed, looking relieved. "Dude, don't do that again! You had us scared half to death when you came home looking half frozen! As soon as you stepped in, you passed out! NEVER do that again, okay? Promise me Leo! It's killer weather out there! And why the hell did you take off your coat? Raph said that you wore it when he was there, but when you came home, you didn't have it! What the hell were you thinking! It's below freezing out there!"

Leo was barely listening. "My coat? I didn't have it?" He asked in faint surprise.

Don gave him a weird look. "Um, no…"

"Oh."

"Leo?" Don asked, looking questioningly at him. "You feeling okay, bro?"

Leo nodded. "Oh yeah. Just fine Don. Just a lil' tired."

Don nodded slowly. "Yeah. You'd better get some sleep. You almost froze out there! Jeez! What were you thinking!"

"Goodnight Don."

"Goodnight. But what the hell were you thinking!"

Leo didn't answer. He was already asleep.

* * *

A week had passed before they finally let him get up and move around. Of course, they absolutely refused to let him go outside, even for a second. And Leo felt that it would be a _long_ time before they finally allowed him to go outside unsupervised.

It was a shame, really. He wanted to see something. He wanted to know if he didn't just dream the whole entire thing with Snow. Don said that he didn't have his coat, but the whole thing still felt so much like a dream…

Leo stepped into his room for the first time and flicking on the lights. He froze. There, on the bed, was his coat.

And on it was a note saying,

Thanks Leo! I finally found my brother! I'm so glad I got a chance to know you. I hope to meet you again, but don't hurry it up! You still have a whole life ahead of you so don't waste it!

_Sincerely, _

_Snow._

* * *

_Hm..that was weird. Ah, well._

_Well, that wasn't a quick one-shot. But anyways, please review!_


End file.
